Vice President - 1 year term (2013-14); on ballot for President (2 year term) , 2015-2017.

Jodi has been a full-time instructor at IVC for four years. Her positive experiences attending CGS conferences and interest working with fellow geography instructors and students are the main reasons why she is running for a board position. Her professional interests include field study classes and developing a service learning program. Born and raised in California, she has a love of learning about the state and teaches California geography every spring. She looks forward to the opportunity to give back and serve as CGS President.

*Jodi has been acting Vice President since October 1, 2013

Secretary - 1 year term (2014-16);

.Sally Otton - San Joaquin Delta College
My name is Sally Otton. I am a full time high school Spanish teacher in Tracy, CA as well as an adjunct geography instructor at San Joaquin Delta College. I have been the CGS secretary for the past few terms.
I enjoy traveling and exploring new places. I speak Spanish and a little French. In addition, I have been studying Japanese for the past 4 or 5 years. I have lived in Spain and spent time in Japan. I enjoy meeting people and learning about their cultures.

Board - 3 year term (2014-17)

Jennifer Campbell - American Red Cross

B.A. Sacramento State - Geography

Jennifer Campbell is an intern with the American Red Cross in Sacramento, CA and a recent graduate of California State University, Sacramento. Jennifer’s interest in geography blossomed in the fall of 2005 when she did volunteer work in Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina. She later returned for a second trip to work in the reconstruction of buildings in the community of Biloxi, MS. After an introductory course at Cosumnes River College, she decided that Geography was the field she needed to pursue. It had all her loves; travel, the outdoors, interesting weather, and interesting people. Transferring to California State University, Sacramento, she chose a major in Human Geography and focused on the disaster cycle and preparedness. She is currently working an internship with the Red Cross working on research projects under the Preparedness Manager. Besides working in the office, she has also taught preparedness classes for the Red Cross. In fall of 2013, she was assistant to the President of the APCG for the annual conference. Prior to her work in Geography, Jennifer was in the event planning business for 4 years and was a homeschool mom for 14 years.

Kate Davis - San Jose State

Kate Davis teaches at San Jose State University. An historical geographer, she received her doctorate from UC Berkeley in 2002 with a focus on environmental history, and a dissertation on the Monterey sardine industry. Kate is also interested in the activities of women explorers and geographers from the turn of the 20th-century and is currently writing a biography of Ynes Mexia, explorer and botanist who collected in Mexico and South American in the 1920s and 1930s. She has also worked with Habitat for Humanity in Guatemala and has taken both undergrad and grad students there for study abroad, research, and service work. Kate has been editor of the California Geographer for several years now. She brings an enthusiasm for geography, teaching, and looks forward to working with other CGS members to continue the important work the organization does in promoting the field inside and outside academia.

Currently Steve Koletty presides as the President of the Los Angeles Geographical Society. Steve teaches Geography, GIS and Environmental Science at East Los Angeles College where he developed their Associate Transfer Degree in Geography, the first in the Los Angeles Community College District. His research interests focus on transnational migration, urban ethnic communities, and “tiki” geography. He takes special pride in encouraging undergraduate students to actively participate in the academic community. He has mentored more than one hundred forty student presentations at various professional meetings including the Association of American Geographers, the California Geographic Society, and at the Southern California Conference on Undergraduate Research. In 2010 Steve was honored by the California Geographic Society as a “Friend of Geography”.

Jason Pittman - Folsom Lake College

BA, UC Davis; MS, Oregon State University

Jason Pittman has been a member of CGS since 2000. He is currently serving on the CGS board and has served as the Elections chair and the Cartography Competition co-chair. Jason has regularly participated in CGS activities by leading field trips (Rivers of the Mother Lode at the 2003 annual conference), mentoring CGS student presenters, and participating in several CGS annual conference discussions, field excursions, and presentations. Jason grew up in California and has spent most of his professional life in California working as a community college professor, an Environmental Engineer, a professional river guide and a GIS Analyst. His professional and recreational interests are focused on all things related to rivers, California Geography, and GIS. Jason is currently the Department Chair of Geosciences at Folsom Lake Community College and teaches courses in geography, geology, and GIS. His current focus is on using remotely operated vehicles (ROV) to collect aerial imagery and expanding the use of geospatial technologies in geoscience course at Folsom Lake College. Jason lives near Coloma, California with his wife and two children.

Lucas Reyes - Humboldt State University

Lucas Ysidro Reyes is graduating Humboldt State University with the degree of Bachelor's of Arts in Geography and a Geospatial Sciences minor. Previous research has included field work internationally, most recently Tibet to study the agriculture of the semi-nomadic peoples. Deep roots in the San Joaquin Valley have led to his latest project studying the effects and displacement caused by the current California drought. He is a previous CGS presenter and has held various student government positions and worked with faculty and administration during the accreditation process for State Center Community College District.

Maureen Smith - Saddleback College

I have been serving the CGS as a Board Member since 2008 and hope to be elected to serve another three year term. CGS provides an amazing forum for our students to get their first experiences with not only attending a geography conference and meeting others that share in their interests but a friendly environment to present their research. Along with being a CGS Board Member, I am the Department Chair of Geography and GIS at Saddleback College. Thank you.

Ben Timms - Cal Poly SLO

"Ben" Benjamin F. Timms is teaches at California Polytechnic State University. His research focuses on environmental conservation, land-use and land-cover change, political ecology, and sustainable tourism development in the Caribbean and Central America. If elected to be a board member for the California Geographical Society he would like to promote participation by undergraduates at the annual meeting and work to link Geographers in the professional world with the Society.